


Language of Flowers

by Angel_Lily



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Eventual Sterek, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Scott the husky, Teen Derek Hale
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-09-03
Updated: 2017-04-28
Packaged: 2017-12-25 13:05:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/953445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angel_Lily/pseuds/Angel_Lily
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Coming from the country side, Stiles' new school was a school of modernistic proportions. So when Stiles begins his highschool career in a new environment, he hopes to make new friends and have the grandest time of his life.... He wasn't expecting a social class based school and the whirlwind of negativity that begins to accumulate the moment school starts...</p><p>New school, new surroundings, new friends... New love??</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Arborvitae (Everlasting Friendship)

**Author's Note:**

> I'm thinking this will be about 8 to 10 chapters long depending on how I pace it.... But I really just wanted to write a High school AU where Derek is still the sourwolf and he and Stiles meet as peers.
> 
> BTW:: Based off of Imadoki! (nowadays)

Language of Flowers

Chapter 1: Arborvitae (Everlasting Friendship)

"I can't believe it! This is going to be my school! So exciting!" 

A teenaged boy with a lanky but lean build, looked around the empty school lot. Had any of the locals been around and seen him, they'd have scoffed and wrote him off as a country bumpkin, but this was his first time being by himself and this was the first school he had gone to that wasn't surrounded by trees on end. Well, if he was honest, this really was the only other school he'd ever been to outside of his home town.

"Everything looks big and tall and _shiny._ " His brand of enthusiasm was met by a happy growl. "Yes, and you're shiny too Scottie!" He said as he knelt down and patted his companion's glossy fur coat gleefully. He was met with happy licks on his face. 

"You know school is closed right."

He looked around searching for the source of the voice and he centered on a guy roughly around his age. He was wearing a snug basketball jersey and shorts and basketball sneakers. If he guessed right then he was only slightly shorter than said teenager with the short black cropped hair. The most redeeming quality would be that his eyes were a gorgeous hazel. The kind that couldn't decide whether they wanted to be blue or brown and even green the next. Plus the fact that he had an athletic build helped. Most definitely a jock. A basketball player to be exact if the familiar orange ball under his arm was any indication. 

"Uh, yeah I knew that, but I wanted to see the school." Standing up, he plastered a smile on his face as he sheepishly rubbed his arm. 

"Couldn't wait until tomorrow?"

"Nope! It's going to be my first day here so I wanted to see what the place was like before all the kids get here!" He couldn't help but gleefully look around even with the stranger as an audience. He was enthused to see that all that he read about Beacon Hills High were up to his expectation and more. The place was as modern as they come. Although coming from a small town himself, he had little material to compare it with. 

"So you just decided to take your little mutt on a stroll to school." By the tone of phrasing, it wasn't a question but a statement. A mere observation.

"He's not a mutt! He's a husky and he's only 4 months old plus he has a name!" He interjected. He was followed by a low growl directed at the amused stranger whose grin and smirk was clearly visible. "He's my faithful companion, Scott. I'm Stiles by the way. And you are?"

"Leaving."

"Huh? Just like that?" 

"Did you expect me to stay around and play with you and your little wolf faced doggie?"

"Hmmph! If anything, you're more like the sourwolf." Stiles snickered at his own joke and ushered Scott towards the exit. He'd done his initial gawking of the building, and with his curiosity satisfied he felt like heading home. "Bye mister sourwolf!"

Stiles, ever the graceful swan, wanted to make a smooth exit but did not see the tree in front of him and slammed right into it. The initial impact made his vision spin, but with Scott right by him, he righted himself and gained his bearings.

"Ow!" Stiles rubbed his forehead and found some traces of blood. Of course, he had to look like an idiot in front of a stranger and he hadn't started school yet. Why did he think that he could at least look and act normal for at least a day?

"You're hurt." Before Stiles knew it a handkerchief was being pressed to his forehead. Stiles guessed that he must have looked stupid enough to warrant some help. Not that he needed it. It was a small scratch, not a complete brain injury.

"Thanks." Stiles moved to give the handkerchief back but the stranger was already walking away. 

"Keep it. I'm leaving before you get run over by something else and I feel responsible enough to help you." There was mirth and amusement in his tone. He waved his farewell until he was out of sight and Stiles could only look at the stranger's retreating back.

"Well Scottie! I guess I maybe made my first friend here! But it's sad that I didn't get his name though," said Stiles as he strolled along Scott. He kept thinking about the guy he just met. Were all the kids in this school gorgeous like they stepped out of a magazine or was that guy an exception? 

~

Dawn broke much earlier than he would have liked. Stiles found himself tangled up in a mess of blankets and pillows. He had stayed up late trying to get Scott acquainted enough in the apartment building they were staying at but was met with very little success. Scott had been so used to the great big backyard they had from their previous residence, and here they had to make do with a single studio apartment. Not that it made it any less special. He was just happy to experience this for himself. The best part was the private, enclosed roof access he had so Scott was freely able to run around as he pleased. And if he happened to do his business up there then all the better for Stiles. He can always clean up after his best buddy. 

A low growling sound followed by paws pawing at him got his attention and he swatted Scott away. He was grumpy from the lack of much needed sleep, but since Scott looked hungry he'd just feed him before he left for school. With that settled, he got to readying for school. 

Donning his new uniform felt like such unfamiliar territory. His previous schools had no school uniform so the students were able to wear whatever as long as it was within the dress code. But he wasn't entirely unsatisfied either. The black pants, white button up shirt, tie and black blazer with white trimmings and school logo where the breast pocket usually go made him look dapper. He felt confident and ready to take on the challenges ahead. 

~

Seeing the school empty was one thing, and to see it on a school day was another. It was exciting to be in a new place and the prospect of getting to know people and making new friends would be the icing on that cupcake. 

Buried in the campus map that came along with a list of his schedule, he tried to locate his homeroom. Not paying attention, he bumped right into some body and he ended up sprawled on the floor. 

"Sorry, I wasn't pa-," Stiles looked up to see that he had bumped right onto the same guy that he met just the day before. "Oh it's you! Sorry I wasn't looking where I was going."

Stiles righted himself and picked up his things. He chuckled to himself but noticed that the other guy wasn't the least bit amused. 

"Watch where you're going," said the guy before walking away. Stiles was slightly confused. Gone was the weird amusement and mocking grin that Stiles associated the guy with when they had initially met. It was now replaced with a scowl instead. Maybe his mind was failing him and that wasn't the same guy he met. Before he could think too much about it, the bell rang and he scurried off to his homeroom, hoping the direction he was going was the right way. The school was impressively big, but that became a disadvantage when he couldn't find the way to his homeroom instead. 

~

He made it just in time before the second bell rang. Most of the students were in groups mingling amongst themselves yet there was one larger group that was surrounding one guy, he noticed. 

"Must be hard to be that popular," snickered Stiles underneath his breath. He wanted to see who it was, and he craned his neck only to catch a familiar face. It was the same guy he had met when he was taking an impromptu tour of the school and the same one he had bumped into this morning. Thinking that he owed the guy an apology for ruining his day, hence the permanent scowl, Stiles opted to just walk up to him and apologize once more. 

"So, I'm sorry for bumping into you this morning I-" 

Stiles was cut off upon approach as the group of students around his intended target all turned to him and blocked his way over. 

"Who's this?" asked one of the boys.

"Umm. My name is Stiles." He answered awkwardly. This was starting to get weird he thought. When did the guy get bodyguards?

"Do you even know who you're talking to?" 

"Yeah, and which family are you from?"

"What's a Stiles?"

The questions came at him like a chorus. He didn't know which one to answer first or whether he should be answering them at all. It was like an inquisition to his back story was being made. And all he wanted to do was apologize. Why was it that hard?

"Wow. Okay. I didn't realize talking to him requires such detailed exploration of my life." Stiles bit out sarcastically.

"You can't just up and talk to the heir of the Hale corporation. He has no time for simpletons like you." The words dripped with venom as one of the girls that defended the still silent Hale went on. 

"Yeah, right. Whatever. I just wanted to apologize to _Mr. Hale_ for bumping into him this morning." Stiles made a quick retreat to the nearest unoccupied desk just in time as their homeroom teacher walked in and ushered everyone to their seats. 

The rest of the class also scoped out their seats and situated themselves. In all the commotion and negativity, his mood soured severely and he was left feeling agitated towards his new classmates. Who knew this school would come with such egoistic bastards? At that moment he couldn't help but miss his friends and the kids he grew up with in his hometown.

The rest of his classes whizzed right on by. Since the first day of classes pretty much consisted of teachers going through their syllabi and what their expectations were for that semester. Stiles took it all in spades, after all, his academic prowess was what got him a scholarship to this school in the first place.

Walking out of his class period before lunch time left him bogged down completely. His high expectation for the first day of school was not lived up to. Instead of making friends, it would seem that everyone had heard about his run in with the Hale heir so they made sure to alienate him as much as possible. 

He walked on like a zombie until he found himself in a greenhouse of some sort. It was warmer inside, but the garden that it housed was beautiful. There were a variety of plants and flowers that came in different shapes, sizes and color. He decided that this was as good as any to deflate and unwind in the mean time. 

"Ugh, so annoying," he muttered. More to himself than anything and hang his head in exhaustion.

"Well aren't you the happy camper, I thought you were so gung-ho about this school?"

Stiles looked up only to see the Hale heir in front of him with that half grin and half smirk that greeted him in their first meeting. Gone was the scowl and unemotional mask.

"Well _Mr.Hale_ look who finally decides to speak up," said Stiles. He was still annoyed by the guy's terrible mood swing. But on the off chance he had a twin he made sure to ask, "so before I speak out of turn here, I have to ask. Do you have a twin brother or something or a relative that looks a lot like you except a lot more emotionally constipated?"

"Uhh, no."

"Then it was you! The guy I met yesterday who gave me a hankie for my forehead! Which, by the way, still stings but you can hardly tell it was even scratched at all." Stiles was now up on his feet and invaded the guy's personal bubble a little. 

"Derek, my name is Derek. Mr. Hale would be my father."

"Alright Derek, whatever you say. So what's with the sourwolf act anyways?" Stiles jibed and leered at Derek, eyeing him closely.

"It's not an act. Everyone in this school only wants to be friends because my family owns one of the largest textiles corporation and their family wants or needs something."

"Wow. Sucks to be you in a way, but do you really not have any friends? Doesn't it get lonely sometimes?"

"I don't need them. Those kinds of things are only a distraction."

"I can be your friend."

"Define friend."

"Oh you know, someone you can talk to, share your feelings. Fight about the simplest things. Get into trouble with." Stiles couldn't believe he was trying to define such a big term to Derek Hale. Who knew the guy had trust issues?

"Get real. Those kinds of things may work for someone like you, but I have no room for that in my life." 

Without as much as a glance back, Derek walked away and left a confused Stiles behind thinking what kind of a life had these kids led here that made them think they were better than everyone else. Wouldn't it be lonely without even a single friend to share your burden with?

Before Stiles even knew it, his feet were already moving on their own accord. Even if he didn't want to admit it, he wanted to run right up to Derek and tell him he was wrong. He was completely wrong for thinking that friends are only a distraction. That there was no sense in it. Something in his mind wanted to rebut that argument. 

"Hey! Derek!" Stiles yelled out as he almost caught right up to the man himself. He was once again surrounded by his followers and he didn't seem all the more relaxed. In fact, the Derek he had talked to mere moments ago seemed more relaxed and himself than the man he was facing. "I know you said that you don't need friends, but I'm going to prove you wrong!"

With Stiles yelling his declaration, the student body that passed them stopped and gawked. To everyone else, here was a new kid not within the normal status that the entire student body held, and he was picking a fight with THE Derek Hale. The heir of the Hale corporation. The guy whose family's money practically built the school. The guy who can turn the entire academic field against you on a simple whim. 

"What's the use? This school has taught me that you use people for your own gain and be done with them when it's over. How can you possible convince me otherwise?" Derek was amused. This guy was clearly challenging him and instead of making him angry, it amused him. Normally, the student body try and gain his favor for their own gains. Much of the attention comes from their parents wanting to do business with their family's company by using their child's so-called friendship with the heir of the Hale corporation as leverage. 

"Because you don't know it yet, but you and I are going to be friends!"

TO BE CONTINUED~


	2. Lavender (Devotion and Distrust)

Chapter 2: Lavender (Devotion and Distrust)

_Wow... I still can't believe I said that. I'm so embarrassed."_

Stiles lied awake the next morning thinking about the previous day's events. If he was honest, it was actually traumatizing. What was he thinking blurting out that he'd make Derek see that they'll one day be friends. 

"Scottie I think I lost my mind yesterday. Maybe it's a good idea to stay home today." Stiles wanted to forget yesterday existed so he was thinking of ignoring it until it went away. A quick head butt became his answer. Stiles, however, refused to budge and a quick bite made him relent quickly. 

"Have you gone crazy too?" mumbled Stiles as he willed his body to get up. He wasn't looking forward to going to school, but it seemed like Scott didn't much like him moping around anyways. "Fine, I'll go get ready!" 

As soon as he got out of the apartment building he was staying on, he felt the slow, tiny droplets of water hit his skin.

"Aww great! Don't let it rain now!" Stiles shrieked out loud and ran his way to school. His apartment building was a few blocks away from school so if he was fast enough, maybe he'd be able to get to school without getting too drenched. 

As he was running, he happened to notice Derek in a car pass slowly by him. Stiles thought that maybe he could hitch a ride since the rain was starting to fall harder. When Derek noticed him trying to flag him down through the passenger side windows by flailing arms, Derek briefly addressed the driver and for a moment Stiles thought that maybe they'd stop for him, except the car just zoomed on by faster. 

_That jerk!_

Stiles ran faster trying to catch up to the car. He was going to give that guy a piece of his mind!

He got to school faster than normal, and the rain had started pouring about halfway through. He was slightly drenched by the time he caught up and he was fuming. 

_How rude! Letting me get rained on like that!_

"Derek!"

"Oh- you're already here. You're a fast runner." 

Stiles was astonished. Derek had the gall to look surprised instead of ashamed. 

"I was trying to hitch a ride! You left me in the rain!"

"Huh? I thought you wanted to race." Derek brushed him off and walked off to class. Stiles was about to follow, but was blocked off by Derek's now present bodyguards. Derek was through the doors and out of sight when one of the guys blocking his way pointed an accusatory finger at him.

"You have got a lot of nerve! After making such a ruckus yesterday, you expect to be cozying up to the heir of the Hale corporation?" The tone was aggressive and held no compassion towards him. 

"You guys defend him like a baby. Are you his friends then?"

"Of course we are! The relationships we build in this school at this time will help benefit us in the future."

"That's friendship?" Stiles never got an answer as they left him as soon as Derek was safely behind classroom doors. They must think that he wouldn't try to get close to Derek and make him see that they could be friends if they were in class. Well, he'd just have to show them. 

Walking in to class, he immediately noticed that his desk was missing. He was about to make a ruckus when at the corner of his eyes, he found his desk completely tagged and vandalized and was now at the corner of the room away from everyone else. He wasn't oblivious, he knew the rest of the student body hated his guts and this was their form of retaliation. But he was always a fan of proactivity so he'll do what he does best... be proactive. 

_Hmmmph! I'll show them!_

Stiles took his desk and made sure to place it right next to Derek. 

"Hi buddy!"

"You're annoying."

Stiles smiled a sly smile. He had a feeling there were glaring eyes following him, but that only make him want to smirk a little more. He was pretty sure Derek's fan club wasn't anticipating that he would place his desk next to Derek. It was a genius move!

The tension somehow resolved or at least eased off once the instructor walked in and started class. Everything was going fine until his eyesight started getting blurry. He tried to clear his head and thought that maybe the day's excitement was just getting the best of him and he was having a hard time concentrating.

He was taken out of his thoughts when the instructor addressed him.

"Stiles, please read the bottom paragraph of the page we're on."

"Okay-" Stiles stood to read the paragraph but swayed as his vision spun. Then the next thing he knew he was trying hard to breathe as his chest started aching all the more. The last thing he noticed was seeing a crowd surround him until nothing.

~

"Why do I feel like my head is pounding?" Stiles groaned as he sat up. It didn't escape his attention that he was lying on a bed with the curtains drawn to what looks to be the nurse's office.

"You fainted in the middle of class, so one of your classmates brought you here." He was answered by the nurse from the other side of the curtain. She went and drew the curtain back as she checked on him. She placed a thermometer under his tongue and checked his vitals. When she was done, she handed him some tablets and water to wash it down. He gladly took it and thanked her.

"Was it Derek?" Curiosity sparked his interest. He couldn't imagine anyone else coming to his rescue since the student body hated him. Not that he wanted it to be Derek that swooped in and saved him, but it was just a foreign feeling to have anyone from this school help without being prompted. Let alone go out of their way to be nice.

"No, it was a girl named Erica."

Stiles blinked in confusion. Erica was the girl in class that was almost up to par with the Hale family's social and financial reputation. He hadn't spoken one word to her before so why would she risk the wrath of the other kids just to help him?

"Oh. I should probably thank her," mused Stiles as he tried to get up from the bed. 

"You should probably lay down for a little while longer. Your fever just broke and your body isn't at its tip top shape at the moment. I'll write you a pass for your classes so you don't get penalized," the nurse smiled at him warmly and went about to draw the curtains close but he declined the offer and said that he'd feel too guilty about missing class if he wasn't really incapacitated.

"Thank you very much but I'll just head back since I think the pills you gave me just started working. I'll make it through the rest of the day and rest at home." Stiles got up and walked to class, but as soon as he got back the bell rang and class ended anyway. He collected his belongings and walked up to Erica and thanked her. 

"Thanks for taking me to the nurse's office. It must have been hard carrying me all by yourself." Stiles tried to paint on a smile, but it came out awkward. Here was this chesty blonde chick whose eyes were almost doe like looking at him like he was the town's gossip, and it made him feel like he was under a microscope.

"Actually I didn't do the carrying. Derek did. All I did was point out the way and told the nurse what happened when she got there." Erica seemed brash the way she spoke, but there was an almost gentleness to them... almost.

"Well, thanks anyways." Stiles was about to retreat and head to the next class, but Erica stopped him.

"Wait a sec. I know you're out planning to make Derek your best friend or something, but you're an interesting guy too. Let's be friends!"

"Wow! You'll be officially my first friend here! Of course! I accept!" Stiles was delighted. He was so keen on his project Derek that he failed to notice others around him. Maybe Erica can help him stop regretting ever coming to this school. After all, the year just started and if he was making friends already then that could only mean that things are looking up.

~

The day flew by as Stiles found the time to hang around Erica in between break and even in some of the classes they had together. He was also able to thank Derek for helping him which earned him another scolding from the Derek fan club. This time it was about wasting the time of the Hale heir when there are obviously other important things to take care of. 

Stiles took it all in stride. After all, he had made his first friend and nothing could possibly bring him down now. 

It was at lunch time that Erica opted to sit with him. 

"I think Derek must like you, or else he wouldn't be so casual about his interactions with you."

Stiles' eyes grew and widened with Erica's sudden statement.

"Really? I keep thinking I'm only annoying him."

"Maybe, but he's a lot more casual with you than he is with most students."

"You think he sees me as a friend yet?"

"I wouldn't go that far, but it's just a feeling. Maybe I'm wrong."

Stiles didn't dwell on it. He was going to make Derek Hale his friend and that was that. He just needed to be sincere in doing so, or else he'd be just like those others that hang around him. Nope, he wasn't the type to wait until scraps are thrown his way. He had more self respect than that and being a lap dog to some sourwolf was not how he would consider friendship with Derek.

~

The day finally came to an end and Stiles had bid Erica a farewell which was returned just as warmly. The pills the nurse gave him was starting to wear off and he was feeling slightly under the weather. It was a good thing the rain had stopped and he was able to walk without the possibility of getting soaked. Just as he was out of the gates, his vision started getting blurry again. He thought about going back to the nurse's office to get some medicine, but he figured if he can make it just down the street the convenience store should have something. 

"Hey, you okay?" 

Stiles turned around to see Derek without the fan club. He shot him a smile and nodded before walking on.

"You're obviously not. Get in, I'll give you a ride."

"That's okay, I don't live far from here. Just a couple blocks away to the Highton View Apartments so I'll be alright."

"You don't look alright. Will you just get in?"

"I said I'm fine!" Stiles voice was getting louder and he really hadn't meant to come off like such a jerk. He had learned to grow up independently and people doing things for him made him get on edge. It was one thing to be the one to ask for help, but for someone to pity you enough to help hurt his pride. It was a weird paradoxical situation, but it was the truth.

Derek, on the other hand, had about enough. He told the driver to just go and left Stiles there. The boy obviously was not anywhere near close to being okay. He was flushed, and looked to be about seconds away from toppling over. He took once last glance back and noticed that Stiles was now kneeling and holding onto the wall just to keep upright.

"Oh for the love of- stop the car." 

Derek bounded back to Stiles side and held onto him. He felt more than anything that he was starting to get a lot warmer to the touch than he had this morning when he carried him to the nurse's office.

"You're burning up. I need to take you to the hospital."

"No!" Stiles tried to get away from Derek's grip. "I hate hospitals! Too expensive! I hate the smell and I hate shots!"

"Expensive? But you're a child," Derek was getting miffed. It was one thing to be stubborn but another thing to be stupid. And right now, Stiles was dead center in the capital of stupid. 

"I have some good medicine at home..." Stiles was close to passed out and Derek carried him back to the car. The driver showed concern, but was quickly told to get to the apartment building where Stiles currently resided in. The trip was brief and Derek had carried Stiles bridal style all the way up to the third floor where he stayed. The apartment manager had obliged him and took them up to room and even opened it for them. He was thankful for it. 

Derek was greeted by a low growling sound as soon as the door opened. He remembered this furry creature, and the mutt was obviously none too happy with him bringing back a sick Stiles.

"Quit growling Cujo. He's feverish, not dead." Derek was silently berating himself for talking to the dog as if it was a person. He was taken out of his thoughts when the figure in his arms started to cough mildly and convulse. He got him to the bed and noticed that Stiles has sweated profusely through his clothing. 

He first took off the blazer and the tie and was about to unbutton the button down shirt when he was met with another low growling sound.

"You want him to get worse? Damn. I can't believe I have to do this." It shouldn't have been that big of a deal. He'd seen plenty of men shirtless in the locker rooms before. Although, to be fair, he had never been the one to undress them in the first place. 

Just as the last button was undone, Stiles eyes fluttered open. Derek was not prepared for the shrill set of lungs the boy possessed. His ears rang loudly and Stiles clutched the set of blankets towards him as if to cover sensitive parts.

"What the hell!"

"You were soaked in your sweat, I needed to get you out of your clothes."

Stiles blinked in surprise. When he surveyed his surroundings. He was back in the apartment. Derek must have carried him back. 

"Sorry I must have inconvenienced you," said Stiles. 

"Are you sure you'll be alright now?" asked Derek as he made his slow retreat back out the door. Scott was by his side licking his fingers, as if to thank him. He paid it no mind but focused on the previously incapacitated boy in front of him.

"Yes, I have some good medicine here."

Derek nodded in acknowledgement and walked off. He didn't bother looking back when he heard a jubilant thank you coming from Stiles. Instead he kept walking and hid a small smile. 

~

Stiles was early to school the next day. He was feeling a hundred percent better than he did yesterday and it was all thanks to Derek. Had Derek not been around to help him, he'd have been roadkill for sure. He sought out Erica in the morning but when he got to her, she pretended to be busy and make a quick exit.

_That was weird._

Stiles put it out of his mind up until they got to home room. His desk was once again in the corner of the room but the fan club has situated themselves around Derek and left him no choice but to find elsewhere to place his desk. In this case, he took it next to Erica who looked way too sullen all of a sudden. He didn't even try to bring up a conversation, he knew something was bothering Erica and he wanted to get it out of her, but right now wasn't the right time.

Class started and he was eventually able to put it out of his head for the moment. Neither Derek nor Erica tried speaking to him and he felt ostracized. Things always seem to go from crap one minute and good the next. When he thinks things were looking up, it just craps out the next. 

He waited until lunch hour to track down Erica and even then she was reluctant to talk to him. This made him not just weary of her, but also angry. What was it with kids in this school and their ever changing moods? It shouldn't be the normal. Or maybe it really was him that was causing this plethora of emotions. 

"Erica, will you wait up?" Stiles called out as she attempted to walk away.

"No. You don't get to make any demands," she retaliated.

"What the hell is wrong with you? Will you talk to me?" Stiles was grasping straws. He really didn't have any footing in this friendship, but he wanted to hold on. He keeps wondering if maybe she just woke up one day and found out that being friends with him was not worth it. 

"Derek. Why the hell does he care so much? " Erica's voice was accusatory. She sounded almost like everyone else he had encountered. Then it dawned on him. She must like Derek. Maybe the whole reason she even befriended him was to get closer to him. It was depressing and sad and it might be closer to the truth than he would like to admit. 

"I get it. You like him. I'm sorry I've been so blind. I'll try and set things straight."

"Wha-?"

"No it's okay. Go to the observatory at 5pm and I'll set up a meeting between you and Derek." Stiles was adamant about it and Erica just kept silent through it. "Make sure you tell him how you really feel."

Stiles ran off to find Derek. Thankfully, none of his fan club were around to stop him. 

"Derek!" All Stiles got from Derek was an upturned brow and a questioning glance. "Okay so I have something to give you. Meet me at the observatory at 5pm got it?"

"Why can't you just give it to me?"

"Because! I have my reasons. Now just meet me at there at 5."

Stiles left abruptly before Derek could even ask what that was all about. He figured he'd just wait it out and find out later just like Stiles said.

~

"Scottie, it's almost 5. Do you think she'll tell him how she feels?" 

Stiles was putting away his laundry when he found the handkerchief Derek had used on his previously scratched forehead. Scottie made a whining sound and Stiles threw him a bone. Scott happily chased after it and started gnawing at it once he caught it. 

"Maybe I should check on them. It wouldn't hurt right?" Stiles took it upon himself to check and make sure that everything went on alright. "I'll be back Scottie! Keep on guard for me alright?"

Stiles made his way to the observatory. It was near the school so he had time to get there and not bother the love birds. Maybe Erica would be professing her love to Derek right about now and he'd have the satisfaction to know that he set it all up.

However, when he got there, he didn't expect to see Derek waiting alone. He looked good. The wind blew gently and his hair breezed slowly even with the amount of hair product it must take to keep that hair from falling onto his face. He was wearing a simple black shirt with a v-neck and denim pants that fit a little too snug and showed off his more attractive attributes. Stiles choked back a small whimper. He was having an existential crisis. He was supposed to be cheering on Erica not crushing on Derek. 

"You're late!" called out Derek when he turned around and spotted him.

"You're... alone?" asked Stiles. It should have been a stupid question since he was the one to invite Derek on a pretense of giving him something. He was slightly panicking. Where was Erica? Did she change her mind?

"You wanted to give me something right?"

"Oh yeah!" Stiles was silently glad he took the handkerchief with him. This gave him the perfect cover to the alibi. He pulled it out and handed it out to Derek. "

"What's that?"

"The handkerchief you lent me. I wanted to replace it but this one is all silk and designer and I didn't think I'd be able to replace it so I washed it real good and got all the stains out-" Stiles stopped mid sentence when an honest to god smile appeared on Derek's face. 

"You keep it." Derek was smiling at him and it was a real smile. Something in Stiles' head short circuited. He somehow couldn't comprehend that the Derek in front of him right now was being friendly and warm. He wasn't the Derek he dealt with at school, the cold Derek, the one who wouldn't even give him the time of day.

"What a touching scene." It was Erica who broke the scene's ambience. "Here I was, stuck in traffic trying to get here and look what I find. Two love birds in the middle of their melodramatic scene.

"No. This isn't what-"

"Can it Stilinski! I've had it and I'm pissed!" Erica shoved Stiles aside and walked right up to Derek. "Derek Hale, for the longest time. I have wanted... your assets."

This took both Derek and Stiles by surprise. Neither of them would have expected that under any circumstances. Stiles thought she was in love with Derek, but to want his... assets?

"I have dreamed of marrying into the Hale family and living a life of luxury." Erica seemed to regard Stiles for a moment then returned his attention back to Derek, "I thought pretending to be the sweet, annoying, but lovable type would make you want me, but I didn't realize that you preferred the clueless peasant instead!"

Derek was already tuned out and Stiles had no emotion showing on his face when Erica was done with her rant. Erica, on the other hand, was relieved. She felt better now that she let the cat out of the bag. 

"So you see Stilinski, we are not friends. we-"

"OH MY-! That was way cool! The real you is so cool!" Stiles was practically jumping and hopping from foot to foot. He was laughing in relief. He thought that maybe Erica was being cold to him because of the social structure at school and then the Derek Hale attraction thing, but this was so much better than that! The only alarming thing was that Erica had already tuned in to his attraction to Derek, before he could even voice it out. And with that out in the open, Derek didn't bother to shy from that fact or even pretend to not hear a thing. Maybe there could be something there right?

Then Derek started laughing.

Stiles joined in chorus and started wholeheartedly laughing.

"Are you guys laughing at me?" quipped Erica.

"Of course not she-wolf! You're with friends here!" Stiles addressed her briefly. His chuckles still not under control.

"She-wolf?"

"Yeah, Derek there is the sourwolf and you're the she-wolf." 

Erica looked over to Derek and wondered for a moment why and how he earned the nickname sourwolf. It was then that she joined the chorus laughter. 

_Yes. Friends. At least he could call them that. Friends_

TO BE CONTINUED~


	3. Daffodil (uncertainty and chivalry)

Chapter 3: Daffodil (Uncertainty and chivalry)

The days that followed seemed normal. All too eerily normal for Stiles. His desk was suddenly where it was always supposed to be. He wasn't getting a litany of insults from Derek's fan club. It seemed like he integrated himself into the school structure enough to blend in. Or... it might be because he hung around Derek and Erica on a daily basis and no one dared to spurn their wrath. So technically he was like the guppy being protected from sharks by even bigger sharks. 

Not that he really minded, there were other things on his mind. Erica was out of her shell, she was aggressive and pushy where she was previously cautious and insecure. She showed obvious contempt for Stiles whenever Derek got too close or they were left alone for more than a second. He found it hilarious seeing as how that boat doesn't have the sails to back it up. However, Erica seems to think otherwise.

Derek, on the other hand, was either a really good actor or as oblivious as they come. Stiles tried to hide the fact that he was getting a bigger crush with each day that passes. He acted as if nothing had changed. Well, except for the fact that he was more civil with Erica and Stiles even when the rest of the school population is present. Stiles took it all in. He was glad things were leveling out. He just needed time to settle in this routine. 

"Scottie. Do you think-?" Stiles paused then regarded the ceiling before shaking his head and giggling like an idiot. He was met by a soft lick on his cheek. He scrunched his face and tackled Scott. He wrestled with Scott until he was tired yet the puppy was still game to play. He let Scott gnaw lightly on his finger until he got bored and started chasing his chew toy around. 

Stiles took out his textbook with the intention of studying, but his mind was elsewhere. He started reading the first paragraph, but was discouraged to find that he couldn't concentrate as well as he used to. He was re-reading the same lines over and over again yet they seemed foreign every time. He took a deep breath and let it out and eventually closed the book. He sorely needed a hobby. 

Back in his hometown, he and his dad had a greenhouse and they tended to all sorts of flowers and plants there. One year they grew zucchinis and tomatoes and harvested them and ate them. Other years, they grew flowers like carnations and orchids for the fun of it. They even grew primrose most of the time because his mom used to love it and his dad said it had meant eternal love in the language of flowers. Stiles needed a hobby, his thoughts were leading him to venture towards unwarranted grounds. 

When his eyelids finally started to flutter, sleep was taking over and he let everything else go. 

~

Stiles woke up to the sound of his alarm blaring. He had slept but he still felt restless. As if the past seven hours had passed by in the blink of an eye. He tried to open his eyes, but fatigue was winning over. That is until something heavy landed on his stomach.

"Thanks for the wake up call Scottie, but you are getting heavy," jibed Stiles. He swatted him away when Scott refused to move from his spot. Now completely awake, Stiles got himself ready for school. He was still mildly taking his time walking out when he happened to glance at the clock. If he didn't hurry up he was going to be late, and there was no fooling those attendance machines at school.

Barely making it in the nick of time as he had ran all the way to school, Stiles was glad to see most of the students were just arriving too. It would seem like he wasn't the only one who wanted to put off coming to school as much as possible. Although for it to be the same day was just too weird to be a coincidence. 

"Not planning a Derek get together are we Stiles," Erica said in greeting. The sneer in her tone was implied. 

"It's refreshing to hear you be yourself Erica!" Stiles gave her a grin and walked up to one of the slotted machines near the turnstile and had his card ready to be scanned before entering. Not looking where he was walking, he bumped into a guy and consequently dropped his books. 

"Sorry!" Stiles apologized quickly and dropped down to pick his books up but was too slow as the guy he had bumped into had already gotten them and handed it back. He could only muster up a small thanks in return.

"It's no problem." The guy smiled back at him and it was infectious. The guy had one of those smiles that you just can't help mimic. That was, until the guy picked up his ID card and instead of just handing it back, stuck his gum on it before handing it over.

"Ugh! Yuck! You jerk! Who does that?!" The guy grinned and left with a girl who was grinning like mad. Stiles tried to scrape as much of the gum out of it as possible but the machine couldn't scan it right. "Dang it. It won't accept it."

"Relax. Just go to the administration's office and they'll set you up with a new one." It was Derek's turn to pop up out of the crowd and startle Stiles. "Come on, I'll take you there myself."

It was a quick process. All they had to do was set up a new card which would be available in a couple of hours, in the mean time, they headed back to home room. 

"It can't be just a weird coincidence that everyone was almost as late as me today is it?" asked Stiles as he and Derek walked back to class.

"Late?"

"Yeah late as in not on time, delayed, tardy... should I keep going?"

"That's not what I meant," deadpanned Derek along with an eye-roll. "Today isn't an actual school day, Beacon Hills High has this long standing tradition in setting up committees and clubs during the school spirit week so all regular classes are on hold until the end of the day."

"And that's today? How come I didn't know that? Isn't there usually like fliers and announcements for special events?" Stiles was seriously questioning the validity of the school at that point. What kind of prestigious school uses a regular school day to set up fun and games? But just as the question formed... the answer came swooping down at him. Most, if not all the students at Beacon Hills High are all privileged kids which probably meant that they had stuff like this going on all the year and no one really bats an eye.

"Stupid rich kids," muttered Stiles under his breath. Derek directed a questioning glance his way and he waved it off saying he was just talking to himself. 

As soon as they got to class, the instructor came up right behind them and signaled the start of a meeting.

_Really? We have an actual meeting?_

"Since it's spirit week, we'll be hearing committee nominations first and split up the class from there. Any volunteers?" The whole class seemed to be unresponsive to the teacher's prodding, but Stiles had a thought brewing up in his head and before he could completely process it, his body acted on its own accord.

"I know! Me, Derek and Erica will be on a planting committee!" Stiles said raising his hand like an excited child. Derek shot him a glare which he answered back with a smirk. Erica's eyes narrowed in warning, obviously sending him a warning.

We don't even have a garden here at school. Just a few trees here and there, The hell are you gonna plant?" When one of Derek's previous fan club members spoke up Stiles cackled softly inside. For some inexplicable reason, he missed the way they all seem to take the time to shoot down his confidence. Not that it ever worked, but he missed it. Maybe he was secretly a masochist?

"We have that greenhouse! It's pretty big and this way the custodial staff won't have to take care of all that by themselves," supplied Stiles. The instructor looked deep in thought then granted the motion. There were groans and disappointed mutterings but eventually died down when they noticed that neither Derek nor Erica shot the idea down.

With that in the bag, Stiles took to his seat and felt proud of himself. He paired off with Derek and Erica as the rest of the class decided on their committees. 

"Planting committee?" asked Derek.

"Do you know how big that greenhouse is? You expect me to toil in that thing?" Erica was already calculating the work it'd take and she frowned even more.

"Don't worry guys! I have a green thumb! Err, green-ish thumb." Stiles decided that not even their skepticism would ruin his excitement. He had been wanting to get a hobby out here and this was the perfect activity. It came at the right time as well. 

~

The committee meeting ended quickly and the three decided to get something to eat while the approvals were being taken care of by the student council. The school was a political and societal wonder. They certainly rivaled the inner workings of the outside world. 

"I'm so hungry!" announced Stiles. To emphasize his point he grabbed his stomach dramatically and told the two to hurry up so he can get food. Getting to the school cafeteria was quick but it only dawned on Stiles that he still didn't have his ID card and since the school operates everything using it, he needed the card to even choose something from the menu. "Oh man! The ID card is still not ready!"

"Too bad!" Erica had a smirk plastered on her face while she had her tray out on her hand flaunting her food in front of him. 

"Quit pouting, pick something," supplied Derek with his ID card handy. 

"Huh?" Stiles was dumbfounded for a moment.

"Come on, what do you want to eat? We'll use my card." 

"Thank you! I'll pay you back promise!" Stiles gushed out as he clung onto Derek as if he had just saved his life. The amount of thanks this act of kindness required would not be enough.

"Quit it! No crying, clinging, or gushing! We're committee-mates now so have some dignity!" Derek was internally panicking. He had not been the object of proximal gushing before. He wasn't quite sure how to handle it. Stiles always seemed to throw him for a loop. 

Once they had made their selections and got to a table they started to eat in delight. None of them besides Stiles would admit it, but Derek and Erica felt just as famished as Stiles which is why they all settled quickly. 

_Now that I think about it, if Erica wasn't around this could be like a lunch date... He should just say it._

Stiles giggled in his head which poured out of his lips before he could put a stopper on it. Erica shot him a warning glare as if she knew exactly what he was thinking and Derek paid him no heed. They ate their food in silence and once done, headed back to their home room to see which committees got approved and which ones did not. 

~

"Alright, the student council has decided and here are the list of committees that received approval." The teacher passed out the copies to each student. Some groaned in disappointment while most were jubilant. Thankfully their planting committee was approved. Stiles was doing a little happy dance when the paper slipped out of hand. He reached over, but Derek got the jump on him and handed the paper back. 

"Wow, Derek you have big hands," said Stiles curiously with a serious tone.

"I do? Really?" Derek was now actively aware of the size of his hands. Maybe compared to most, his hands were bigger but now curiosity got the better of him. 

"Here, let's compare." Stiles put up his hand and Derek mirrored them. In comparison, their hands weren't that different. It just so happened that Stiles were long and lean like his build whereas Derek was a little longer and meatier much like the differences in their height and build. 

As their fingers touched it dawned on them that they were still in the classroom. They immediately withdrew their hands, but the damage was done. Most, if not all, had seen the brief exchange. Stiles turned to look out the window and Derek had turned his attention to the piece of paper in front of him as if it was the most interesting thing he had ever seen.

Things could have potentially turned awkward had the teacher not received an e-mail notification to send Derek Hale and Stiles Stilinski to the attendance office. Stiles and Derek were quick to agree and retreated out of the classroom. Stiles was sure Erica would get the wrong idea and kill him. 

"Why do they need you too?" asked Stiles.

"Maybe I wasn't supposed to be the one to fill out the form for you?"

"That's dumb. So where is the attendance office? Is it the same place as the admin office?"

"No, It's up on the 3rd floor."

By the time they got to the elevator, an emergency alarm flashed and the doors closed trapping them inside. Everything in the building went on complete lock down and all doors, which were all electronic, wouldn't budge. It effectively trapped all the students in their classrooms. The unfortunate ones like Derek and Stiles were stuck in an elevator with no way out.

"What the hell?" growled out Derek in annoyance. He toyed with the buttons but nothing was working. Not even the emergency button was active. He was just about to seriously punch the controls in annoyance when the sounds of a stifled sob cut through his rage.

"I hate small spaces."

Derek reached out his hand in the dark and found Stiles in the corner cowering. It wasn't like the defiant boy to cower and that set him on edge. 

"Don't worry, I'm here. I'll get us out of this," reassured Derek. The only problem was that even he wasn't sure if he could. Trying to survey his surroundings, he found a hatch at the top of the elevator. If he could manage to get that open, then he and Stiles could climb out from there and pry open the nearest emergency door exit. Before he could even try, the lights in the elevator lighted up.

"Is it fixed?" asked Stiles lowly.

"Maybe," answered Derek. The elevator moved up but before they could reach the second floor, it stopped and dropped with such force that Derek lost his footing and fell onto Stiles. To prevent himself from colliding with the boy, he opened his arms which, in turn, awkwardly pressed his body closer to Stiles and let his arms encircle the unaware boy.

"Sorry." Derek apologized and moved to separate himself from Stiles but the sudden upward movement of the elevator kept him uprooted to his spot. Then just like before, it stopped and dropped. It repeated the motions quite a bit and Stiles couldn't stop the internal panic from rising. His breathing turned shallow and his vision blurred considerably. Had he seen his face, the ashen color would have alarmed him, but he wasn't in the right mind set. 

Stiles' ragged breathing caught the attention of Derek. He, himself, was not faring well. The up and down motions were making him nauseous. He steeled himself wanting to be strong for Stiles. 

"Focus on me. Don't panic. I'll protect you," declared Derek. This took Stiles by surprise and his breathing stopped for a moment as his heart raced. The rising panic attack was immediately quelled and the dusting of blush across his cheeks was proving to be quite the distraction. 

Like a miracle, the doors of the elevator opened and they gathered their wits and crawled on out of there. Stiles sighed in relief and Derek grinned victoriously. They survived. 

"Surprise!" a voice shouted and snatched up Stiles from behind. 

"The hell-" Stiles tried to twist out from the grip but it was much too strong for him. 

"Guess who?!" asked the stranger as he held Stiles hostage.

"Lahey?" Derek was confused. What was Isaac Lahey doing out there with them when the rest of the hallway were empty and void of people?

"That's right!" The guy said happily, "That was pretty cool Hale!" Isaac smiled a murderous smile as he waved one hand occupying what looked to be a gun. "Focus on me. Don't panic. I'll protect you." Isaac mocked them indignantly.

"I knew this was suspicious. You did this!"

"Bingo! With the help of the lovely Allison Argent of course." Isaac pointed right behind Derek and a girl with long black hair, an angular face and lips that were painted red greeted them from behind a laptop situated in front of her.

"Do you mind taking off the chokehold," bit out Stiles in anger. 

"What did you hope to accomplish?"

"You see, neither of us like you. Parading around school like some scion. We figured we'd knock you down a couple pegs." Isaac pointed the gun right at Stiles head as he regarded Derek. "Don't worry, it's a toy... but from this range, who knows?"

"What do you want... friend?" Derek added the last part for good measure. Surely anyone this demented needed some coaxing.

"Get on your knees." It was the girl who spoke up this time. "You're always so high and mighty but the only thing separating you from us is your last name... so kneel." She had her eyes turned towards their direction and she didn't seem the least bit amused. 

"No!" yelled out Stiles as he stepped on Isaac's toes. "Don't listen to them Derek! I'm not in danger!"

"That hurt," sniped out Isaac, "you're a total doormat Stilinski. You go around this school like sunshine comes out of your ass when all the while people rag on you. You hate enclosed spaces right? How about you get back in that elevator alone." Isaac tried to maneuver Stiles inside the elevator, but Derek sucked in his pride and kneeled before them. 

"Please... let him go!" begged Derek. 

"I never thought I'd see the prideful Derek Hale beg on his knees. You must be more whipped with that boy than I thought," drawled the black haired girl.

Isaac seemed to be just as stunned so Derek acted quickly and threw his shoe right at Isaac which staggered Isaac for a brief moment. It allowed Stiles to get away from the hold and Derek to land a good solid punch on the stomach sending Isaac to double over in pain.

"Shut up! Stiles is no doormat. He put up with the bullying like a champ and stood up to scorn when everything was against him. What the hell is the use of pride when a friend is in danger." Derek stood by Stiles' side and glared back at Allison who still has not moved from her spot. "My last name has got nothing to do with it."

Silence occupied the halls as Isaac and Allison slumped in defeat. Stiles was silent in awe. Derek had just called him friend. He couldn't help feel elated that Derek finally acknowledged his friendship. In the midst of his thought, the school buzzed alive once more as all returned to normal.

"I was forced to go to school here. My family is rivals with the Hale corporation and I thought that maybe causing some trouble in the school the Hales built would make things more interesting." Allison roused up from her spot and took to Isaac's side to comfort him.

"Plus nobody got hurt," remarked Isaac.

"That's your defense?" asked Stiles. He wasn't even angry anymore. For some reason, seeing Isaac and Allison comforting each other took the air out of his outraged tires. 

"That's all we have," answered Isaac.

"You win. Expel us, throw our butts out if you want."

"That's not exactly my call and it is kinda boring here." Derek wasn't one to be accusatory and he wasn't about to start handing down judgement.

"What? But I like it here," said Stiles.

"You don't count! You're a country hick!" bit back Derek.

"You two definitely make an interesting couple!" exclaimed Isaac. 

"Not as cute as us though," said Allison defensively.

"Couple?" Derek and Stiles were both surprised by that comment. 

"That's it! We've made a decision! We're joining your little posse!" Isaac seemed so proud of himself and Allison nodded in approval. By the twinkle in her eye it became a challenge to try and disagree. "Unless you want us to flip out and do this again."

"N-no?" 

_Well... This is an interesting development. Wonder how Erica will take to this news?_

TO BE CONTINUED~


	4. Snowdrop (consolation or hope)

Chapter 4: Snowdrop (consolation or hope)

"So these two want to join our planting committee?" Erica looked over the happy couple in front of her. Stiles only asked Erica's opinion as to not blindside her, but he left out part on how they happened to meet. He figured he'd save their skin and all the while saving himself from Erica finding out how close he and Derek were during the elevator fiasco. 

So he chose the next morning to ambush Erica with the couple while Derek wasn't around to try and convince her. At least without Derek's presence interfering with her train of thoughts, he might be able to get Erica to agree. He shuddered to think what trouble could brew up if they were left unattended. 

"Yeah! Think about it, more people equals less work individually." Stiles tried to put on the most convincing smile and tone he had but he knew Erica wasn't buying it.

"Fine," Erica conceded, "But there is one problem."

"What's that?" asked Stiles.

"According to school bylaws, committees do not exceed more than 3 members at a time," supplied Allison, "I knew that was going to come up sometime."

"Why don't we just call it a club?" Stiles knew it was a stroke of genius. If he could get the club going then they could recruit any number of members. Not that people were lining up to be in anything Stiles was in, but still this way Allison and Isaac can be regular members and they wouldn't need the committee any longer. 

"A club will require the approval of the student council," said Derek as he walked towards them.

"Oh hi! Good morning Derek!" greeted Stiles quite loudly. Erica muttered a low good morning along with Allison and Isaac. Derek only nodded as if to indicate that he had heard. Stiles, in annoyance, whacked Derek upside the head. "Hey! at least say good morning! We all said it."

"Good morning." greeted Derek tersely as if he had created some fashion faux pas. Stiles grinned in victory which was met by a seething Erica. 

"Wow! We're all so fired up just like yesterday!" teased Isaac. Allison had the modesty to look ashamed at her boyfriend's callous words, but both Derek and Stiles had the image of them clutched together with Derek proclaiming that he'd protect Stiles in the elevator running through their heads. 

"What is that about?" Erica moved to interrogate Isaac who pretended to conveniently not know anything which earned him even more questions and a rather vigorous body shake. Allison left it enough alone seeing as how Erica's wrath might just transfer to her if she remotely defended Isaac. She couldn't help but giggle as Isaac was fiercely interrogated by Erica.

"Don't misconstrue what happened. It's not what it seems." Derek spoke just loud enough for Stiles to hear and this sobered them both right up.

"Erica, you can't kill him. We need him remember?" said Stiles to placate Erica who seemed to revert back to her calm self soon after. 

"So why do we need to get the student council approval when the committee was already approved just yesterday?" asked Stiles who still wasn't sure how things worked exactly in this school, at least not when it came to these kinds of things.

"The committee is only approved on a smaller budget so when a club is started the budget has to be expanded therefore we need to get the student council to approve it so that they can allocate the necessary funds." Allison spoke eloquently which made Stiles almost miss the actual words had it not been the subject matter at hand. He started to wonder what she saw in Isaac who seemed like a prankster in the making when she had a good head on her shoulders.

"Okay, so I'll go there and appeal to them then," said Stiles. 

"We'll all go," amended Derek. "Just let me and Stiles handle this and everyone can wait outside since we'll be intruding in their daily morning meeting."

The group headed on to the school conference/AV room which currently was where the meetings were being held. Stiles knocked and let himself in with Derek while the rest stood waiting just outside the doors. 

For some reason, Stiles was expecting a smoke filled room where the student council members were sitting on a long rectangular table facing each other while holding a cigar in one hand as they discussed their agendas. However, it was really more normal than anything. The student council members were scattered in all places as they discussed topics at hand informally. Somehow he liked the mafia scenario in his head better. 

"Oh hey guys! What brings you out here?" asked one of the members currently sitting right across the room. He had the most charming dimples Stiles had ever seen and his smiling face seemed to ease the atmosphere even by a little.

"Well, we have an appeal to make actually," said Stiles rather nervously. Somehow asked to get approval was more nerve wracking when the setting seemed so informal. He would have preferred to walk in on an important meeting like in his imaginary scenario. At least with gangsters you know not to trust them from the get go.

"Alright, two minutes. Start." The guy who addressed them this time looked to be the president if Stiles took a guess. He looked to be the most authoritative and the fact that the others actually listened and dropped what they were doing helped clear up any confusion.

"We want to petition a planting club charter. We'll amend all rights from the planting committee to initiate that if possible." Derek was articulate and impressive as he spoke which left Stiles in awe.

"A planting club? Let me guess, this is a Stilinski idea," drawled the student council president.

"Yep! That's me!" piped up Stiles. His eyes lit up as his name was mentioned. It would seem that his notoriety is more widespread than he first thought.

"That wasn't a compliment," muttered Derek in irritation.

"Two minutes are up, you can leave." 

Stiles was confused, the student council president did not seem like a nice guy at all and they were just dismissed without even a second thought.

"Hale, have they found your uncle yet?"

It was the president who asked and Stiles could visibly see Derek tense up. It made him wonder what was going on. However, it seemed to be like private information so he left it alone... for now.

"It's-" Derek was cut off as one of the other student council members spoke up on his behalf.

"Jackson, it's not our business. Forgive him." Stiles was glad the other guy diffused the tense atmosphere which allowed Derek to smoothly excuse himself and head out leaving Stiles behind.

"He's a handful isn't he?" asked the same guy. Stiles nodded dumbly still not moving from his spot. "Well, my name is Danny by the way and the prick of a student council president over there is Jackson." This earned Danny a mental slap from Jackson from the looks Jackson sent Danny's way. 

"We'll review your petition and give you an answer soon," Danny gave Stiles a wink and shooed him away. He took his chance to walk out and finally felt even remotely safe enough to breathe. When he got out, he was met by somber faces which meant they all overheard and were concerned by Derek's sudden cool behavior. 

"I'll be right back guys." Stiles tried to catch up to Derek who was still slightly spaced out and had walked on ahead. "Derek, what happened to your uncle? Do you want to talk about it?"

"Just forget it, it's got nothing to do with you." It wasn't that Derek had screamed or got mad but his voice sounded so resigned, hearing it was almost heart breaking. 

~

The school day was effectively strained at that point. Derek was silent for most of the day up until sometime in the middle of the afternoon that Derek was called to the director's office and had left for the rest of the day. 

_I wonder if he has any siblings? He seemed so sad when the topic about his uncle was brought up. I hope he's okay._

Walking home, Stiles took to stopping by the stores near his apartment. He bought a couple of things and decided to call it a day and maybe take Scott out for a real walk. It had been sometime since he took Scott out the building. He had mostly relied on the fact that his apartment had a private roof access that he became more or less complacent with Scott's daily exercise. It was a good thing Scott hadn't gone stir crazy just yet and chewed on everything 

Stiles took Scott out for a walk and they eventually ended up near the park where he let Scott run around to play with the dogs. On the corner of his eye he saw a guy and girl arguing quite animatedly. The guy from afar looked like the prick of a student council president and he was arguing with a girl he recognized from one of his classes. He guessed that they must be having a lover's spat as they were heatedly exchanging words, but neither actually pulled away from each other.

_Ah, teenage love_

Stiles chuckled as he mulled over the irony of his thoughts. He was soon pulled out of his thoughts as the pair broke apart. The girl left with a huff and stomped away. The guy headed in the opposite direction and coincidentally was headed towards Stiles' way. In passing, Stiles noticed that it was definitely the student council president who was having the argument with that girl with the strawberry blonde hair and red stained lips whose eyelashes fluttered as she blinked. She was the type of girl he would have been crazy over before he decided that guys were definitely in his sexual hit list.

"Stilinski." Jackson said in greeting. Stiles waved hi back awkwardly. He wanted to ask what he and the girl were fighting over but that really wasn't any of his business so he left it at that. Instead he asked if the planting club would be approved. This earned him a sigh before being informed that sadly they are unable to approve the club.

"That's highly disappointing," muttered Stiles. Not only was that the wrong answer to his question, it was definitely an added downer to an already strained school day. With Derek off in lala land and being currently unsociable, he was getting a headache on how to deal. 

Jackson was about to walk away when he regarded Stiles thoughtfully. 

"Actually I will be willing to pull strings and approve your little club if you do me a favor." Stiles didn't like the sound of that, least of all he didn't like the fact that it sounded sort of perverted coming from Jackson. If this was some sort of sexual favor then Jackson was getting the beating Stiles wanted to hand out in his head. 

"What is it?" asked Stiles cautiously.

"The girl you saw I was with, she's been pestering me for a while now. If you can get her off my back, I might be willing to do what you want." 

"That's it? I get her to back off and you approve the club?"

"That's it... or maybe you'd be willing to go out with me instead. I'm sure I can rock your world." The smug smirk on Jackson's face was irking Stiles. He wanted to do anything just to wipe off that arrogant smirk.

"Yeah- no. I'll stick to the getting that girl off your back part."

"Suit yourself. I'm sure a virgin like you would be sweet in the sheets."

"Dude, gross." Stiles wanted to avoid the topic of his virginity. It wasn't as if he was being a prude but that was one topic that was not for mere strangers. Added to the fact that Jackson being willing to rock his world was not the least bit tempting. At least not coming from a guy so arrogant like Jackson. "Besides you're not my type."

"I'm everyone's type." Jackson bit back. "Whatever Stilinski, so long as you keep your end of the deal, I'll make sure your little planting club happens." 

"Alright, mission accepted." Stiles flashed him a grin and saluted him. When Jackson was effectively out of sight, he called back Scott and leashed him up to head home. 

TO BE CONTINUED~


	5. Chapter 5: Acacia (secret love)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe I'll finally be able to finish this one. Who knows?  
> My apologies for the inconsistent updates and major delays.

Chapter 5: Acacia (secret love)

 

"What the hell were you thinking?" asked Erica towards Stiles.

Stiles gave the news to the group that morning that the student council turned down their petition for a planting club. With the exception of Derek who was still nowhere to be found and Stiles was getting worried.

"I didn't want him to just brush us off so I told him I'd help him with his little problem in exchange of his approval of the club," said Stiles as a matter of factly.

"I don't think I'd put this in the little problem category. You see, the girl he wants off his back is Lydia Martin. She used to be like the queen bee around her middle school as far as I heard." Allison was more familiar with Lydia as she was usually the one with information in the school's social aspects. Especially since both her and Isaac hack the mainframe every now and again digging up dirt on schoolmates that had caught their interest.

"That doesn't matter." Stiles proclaimed smugly. "All I have to do is tell her that she needs to leave Jackson alone and I'm sure that if I explain why, she'll see my reasoning."

"Good luck with that," Isaac had his predatory smile directed at Stiles at that moment. He was very curious on how this little stint with Lydia will turn out after all. Even if they don't get the approval for the club, this little mission of theirs will prove to be interesting.

"Just watch, I'll get her to agree..."

~

Walking into his next class, Stiles immediately spots Lydia in the middle of the room fixing her already impeccable make up.

"Hi," greeted Stiles awkwardly .

"Alright I'll bite. What do you want?" Stiles knew that this wasn't supposed to be easy but he was somewhat dumbfounded on how to go about this course of action.

"Umm, well. You see, this is about Jackson." Stiles wanted to start vague, but what he didn't expect was for her eyes to harden and her lips to curl into a deep frown as she regarded him. If they were on animal planet, he'd be the gazelle that the lions were silently and cautiously stalking. It made him feel ten thousand percent more unsure of what to do next.

"What? You like him?"

"Uh, no."

"Then what the hell does this have to do with him?"

"Well, you see. He wants you to leave him alone," started Stiles. "He says that you've been causing him trouble."

"I don’t see why you need to get between this, especially since it has nothing to do with you." Lydia flipped her hair while glaring at Stiles but not before she tilted her head motioning for him to get away from her. Stiles could take the hint but that did not mean that he's giving up. After all, the planting club is riding on this plus he's never started something he didn't think he could see all the way through.

~

"Has anyone seen Derek today?" asked Erica towards the group as they met up during lunch period.

"He's been MIA all morning as far as I can tell, I didn't see him in any our classes," answered Allison as she toyed with the cherry tomatoes littered on her plate. She scowled at it as if it was insulting her entire being, something about the small round fruit that's misconstrued as a vegetable all its life just made her hate it unreasonably.

"I wonder if he's sick?" Erica was already formulating a plan to visit the bedridden Hale scion and nurse him back to health with her presence. This could be the chance she needed to get him to succumb to her womanly charms.

"Does anyone know where he lives?" inquired Stiles, "now you have me worried." Stiles couldn’t help but wonder if he really was sick or if there was something more to it. After all, it was curious for him to be absent just the day after that weird conversation about his uncle and being called out of class. If that even counted as a conversation, Derek just basically told Stiles to mind his own business and left it as that.

"I'll get you the address," answered Isaac as he typed away on his computer and jotting it down as soon as he found the information needed.

"By the way, can you get me info on Lydia too?" requested Stiles, "We'll need more ammo to get her to back off from Jackson. Though I'm not entirely sure what she sees in that prick." Stiles considered just laying it all out for Lydia, but figured that she wouldn't be that receptive to his request since she had nothing to gain from it; and from what he could tell from the students in this school… no one does anything without something to gain from it.

If he really thought about it, he wasn't so sure why he decided to come to this school any more, but the promise of a bright future loomed over his head. He wanted to make something of himself and going to school in such a prestigious school outside of his hometown seemed like the best idea.

~

Stiles decided after school had ended to go ahead and visit Derek. He had already planned to take Scott out for a walk and this seemed like a perfect idea to hit two birds with one stone.

"Scott! Come on buddy! We're going on a field trip," exclaimed Stiles as he waited for the jovial husky to run up to him by the door. And just like clockwork, the happy go lucky puppy ran towards him excitedly. Even managing to trip on its own legs with his tongue hanging out and tail wagging eagerly.

Stiles couldn't help but think of how different it is to live in the city versus in a small town like Beacon Hills. He wouldn't normally place Scott on a leash as they strolled along the countryside but in the city he was more cautious of his surroundings. Something about being surrounded by tall building and skyscrapers felt less than friendly. The park was their sanctuary, it was large enough for Scott to run around like a crazed dog, but unfortunately they were heading in a different direction today. 

It only took about half an hour of walking until he was in front of a rather large gated driveway. He was suddenly in awe as to how big Derek's place was. It towered magnificently and without competition from the neighboring mansions, which were also quite impressive.

"You didn't think we'd let you come all the way out here by yourself, now did ya?" asked Isaac as he sauntered on over to Stiles with Allison right on his heels but walked with more grace. Stiles let out a sigh of relief that he didn't even realize he was holding. He was so star struck with the great big house that he didn't realize just how nervous he was to be standing there looking like a country hick caught in the Hollywood high life.

"Well look at this," started Erica in an annoyed voice, "how convenient for me to find Stiles in front of my future husband's home."

Stiles was almost comically sweating as Erica shot invisible lasers at him. How could he forget that she was after his assets? It was the hot topic between them. She knew what she wanted and she was vocal about it. Not that there was anything wrong with that. It’s better than playing coy and playing victim. He preferred her this way, it lets him know that they're really friends. He wouldn't have to worry about Erica pulling her punches around him. The only perturbing detail was that Erica was very much hung up on the fact the she thinks there's something brewing more than friendship between him and Derek.

"It's so refreshing to see this side of you again!" Stiles exclaimed laughing, but was cut short as a limo pulled up beside the gate and a familiar head poked through the window with one perfectly sculpted eyebrow raised.

"What's going on?" asked Derek.

~

Before any explanations could be given, they relocated to one of the gigantic living rooms in the impressively sized home. Stiles almost wanted to leave Scott out in the yard for fear of the puppy's energetic curiosity breaking something he couldn’t possibly afford to replace. Derek was the one who assuaged his fears and told him to bring along the pup.

_'Must be nice not to worry about money,'_ thought Stiles as he opted to carrying the pup in his arms instead. Although Derek knew the possible risks, he'd feel entirely guilty for breaking anything.

"Stiles here was worried about you all day so we all decided to come see you," supplied Isaac as they made themselves comfortable in the plush oversized sofa. It was so soft yet firm that it felt like someone was hugging him from every direction.

Derek's signature look was once again present as a raised brow was directed at him. Stiles, at that second, might or might not have blushed underneath that gaze. Not that he'd admit to either.

"In all seriousness, we wanted to check and see how you were doing," expressed Allison. "We weren't sure if you were just out sick or if something else had happened, since you don't normally miss class."

Stiles nodded in agreement, the only thing he couldn't vocalize out loud was the thought in his head that it might have something to do with his uncle. It could have just been a coincidence that Derek was absent the day after Jackson mentioned something about his uncle that left Derek more muted and colder than usual.

"Sorry, I don't mean to make anyone worry. It's just that-" Derek was cut off mid sentence as a rather young and attractive young woman burst into the living room yelling for Derek. As soon as she spotted him, she threw her hands around him and wept lightly onto his chest. Derek, uncharacteristically, stroked her long dark hair as if to soothe her.

Derek then motioned to excuse himself from the group as he escorted the young woman back to her room. The shocked and unnerved faces in the group was directed towards the two figures retreating down the hall.

"Damn! Who was that?" asked Isaac inquisitively. Allison gave him the bow-chicka-wow-wow look and that was enough to get Stiles' heart pounding. Something he chose to ignore at that point in time.

Stiles couldn't help but feel like the spacious living room was 10x smaller than it had just been previously. As he fought an internal monologue from happening, Erica was in full on rage mode, but waited to unleash it until Derek had come back.

"Who was that?" asked Erica. It sounded a lot more accusatory than she intended. Something about the girl irked her to no end. It could have been the way she wrapped her hands around Derek or that woe is me act they had just seen, but something was definitely bothering Erica about her.

"Her name is Paige," started Derek, looking somber as he clasped his hands together as if trying to find a way to explain her. "She's my fiancé."

By the look of his friend's faces, he needed to explain a tad more.

"Truthfully, he's my uncle's fiancé, but ever since he-"

"It's okay, you don't owe us an explanation," said Stiles as Derek's words wandered off.

"To be honest, your situation with your uncle isn't exactly a state secret," said Allison. "There have been rumors going around that he simply disappeared one day leaving all his obligations to you."

As per usual, Allison was straight forward and straight to the point, hitting all the major points without trying.

"It's true," affirmed Derek, "My uncle, though he's only three years older than I am, was supposed to be the next in line to inherit half the estate of the family with my mom bearing the other half, but he decided that he didn't want to follow the path my grandparents laid out before him and ran away." Derek went on to explain that he and his uncle were almost like brothers and best friends growing up. Because of the great age difference between his uncle and mom, his grandparents decided that the more logical route was to pass on 50% of the family estate to him as soon as he turned 21. However, on the eve of his 19th birthday, he simply vanished. All that was left was a note explaining that he needed to find himself first and that he'd come back once he does.

Due to that selfish decision, Derek was renamed the sole inheritor of the entire family estate which also included his uncle's arranged fiancé. Paige, a daughter of another notable family, whose estate was almost about as big as Derek's own family estate. The two families wanted to contract a merger and the easiest way was to broker a marriage between the two families. A marriage of convenience, not of love. Something that his uncle, Peter, was supposed to fulfill but has now been relegated to him.

Truthfully, Derek hadn't minded the arranged marriage. Not at first. He was fairly sure that he wasn’t built for the kind of normal relationships he sees in movies and in other people. It has always been apparent to him that he would have a tough time finding someone who knew nothing of his lineage and the money and power his family commanded.

However, having met Stiles and expanding his once small world, he could see that he wanted more from life. To live freely, to be able to make his own choices. To be able to act brashly… to be more like his uncle. He envied Peter, having the courage to cut all ties and live without the convenience that the family money had accustomed them to. He wasn't so sure he was that brave, not at first. But having seen the way Stiles lived, bereft of most everything he thought he couldn’t live without made him want to try. Derek would be forever grateful to Stiles, but he wouldn't dare vocalize that out loud. Lest he create a monster. Imagining Stiles bragging about lording over Derek just wasn't sitting right for him. He'll let the awkward teen think he was the alpha of the group, even if in truth, Stiles was the more authoritative of them all. After all, he was the reason this rag tag group of friends can even call themselves that.

"So in other words, without your uncle Peter here to take care of his responsibilities, everything rests on your shoulders to continue as if nothing happened," stated Erica. Her eyes brimming with annoyance, and a hint of frustration. If she wasn't quite sure how to get herself integrated to the family before, it seemed much more difficult now.

Stiles could only take so much of the tension. He excused himself from the group citing the need to return home and study before the day is over. Everyone was in agreement and decided to call it a day. Isaac and Allison were the first to leave as they drove together. Erica called her chauffeur and was gone in an instant. It took a little bit of coaxing for Stiles to get Scott to agree to leave the lovely garden and stop peeing on everything.

After everything he learned about Derek today, he just needed some time to wind down and process it. It's not as if he could have done anything for Derek in this situation.

"Stiles," interjected Derek, "In all the craziness, I forgot to tell you why I wasn't in school today. You see, someone caught wind of what could have been my uncle and I went there to investigate."

Stiles nodded numbly. He wasn’t sure how to respond or how to comfort Derek. He was completely out of his element. Look at him spewing all the friendship lines yet at the same time, had no idea how to be a better friend at this point.

"Thank you for checking up on me by the way."

~

The next day in homeroom was business as usual. The lingering annoyance were still directed at him every now and again, but no one has dared act on it. He guessed since he was now surrounded by prominent student body figures like Erica and Derek helped. Who knew his school life could be so… political?

Stiles broke away from his thoughts as soon as the appearance of one Lydia Martin drew his attention. How could he possibly get her to stop bugging Jackson when he knows next to nothing about the situation between them? She didn't seem the needy type but one can never judge a book by its cover.

It was not until the lunch period that Isaac finally gave him a compiled and comprehensive background information on Lydia Martin. It was impressive what the guy can accomplish with a computer, he'd better make sure to stay on Isaac's good side. If he even had one. He just had that crazy flippant look about him that can both be endearing and scary at the same time. Though he's mildly acclimated to it already.

From what he read, there really wasn't anything out of the ordinary. At least nothing unusual for the rich kids of the school. Basically highlighted her grades, social patterns, social circles, and even to Stiles' dismay, her usage of the latrine and tracked her cycles.

School ended just as uneventfully and he just so happened to casually passed by Lydia with a group of seniors who were inviting her to their party that night. And by casually, Stiles was basically stalking the poor girl trying to create an opening to talk to her again. But this was so much better. He could casually crash the party and talk to her there away from a school setting. He just needed to know the place and time and since Isaac and Allison were proficient with gathering info, he'll ask them. He also might have to bring Erica or Derek with him since the two carried a super stardom status and could possible avoid him getting thrown out before he could achieve his goal.

He's sure he can strong arm all of them into going. Now all he needed to do was prepare a heart felt speech to get Lydia to see things his way. He's getting that planting club instated one way or another.

 

TO BE CONTINUED~

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Kudos and comments are greatly appreciated! <3
> 
> Edit::: I forgot to mention that this is based off of Imadoki! (nowadays) and thanks to user RENNmae for noticing... Whew...


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